MARCH 16th - END OF CARNIVAL, END OF SUMMER, PUTTING THINGS TOGETHER

325 days ago

After spending 12 wonderful days with my unbelievably intelligent, funny, sensitive and playful mother, after counting 8 rainy days that won’t let the Carnival get to its end, it finally ended. I went a few more times to Teatro de Verano, laughed hard listening to the murga songs and I anxiously waited for the results with the Araca la Cana members, in the Club Universal, drinking cheap “clarete” rosé wine. Araca got 14th out of 15, Agarrate Catalina got the first prize. So it ended. I think Catalina missed a little the satyre and playfulness that go with Carnival. It was the best show, complete and professional but from my point of view it has to do more with theater than with Carnival.

During the last two weeks I went every day to the National Library that survives in pitiful conditions, although the staff is charming and helpful. It it also the noisiest library I’ve ever seen. I also paid a visit to the City Hall (Intendencia) looking for the murga lyrics, Curtidores de Hongos and La Margarita, winners of the 2nd and 3rd prizes, never answered my e-mails. It was hard to find the Tourism and Celebrations office and to get off the elevator on the 3rd floor (it kept going up and down and stopping everywhere).

Meanwhile I also visited the Pisano winery and wine cellar – quite impressive, including the family story (Italian and Basque roots). We got the best treatment: a delicious “picada” (homemade jamon crudo, salami, parmesan and Colonia cheese) and five bottles of wine: pink champagne, rosé Cabernet Franc/Syrah, Pinot Noir, Pisano Arretxea (a perfect red cépage) and a sweet dessert wine. I went out with two bottles of Pisano Arretxea, I couldn’t resist the temptation, although it wasn’t cheap. The Tannat grapes make a heavy wine I absolutely love, typical for Uruguay.

Before flying to Brazil I went to a small milonga: El Farolito, and I got to dance a bit. I also met a tango teacher and decided to invest in private classes. I like the rioplatense tango culture, the way the men embrace you for a 3-4 minutes eternity. It’s like a speechless conversation that we both know it it would last as long as the song.

Than time has come to embark for Salvador, located in the Bahia de Tudos os Santos, in the north-east of Brasil. An old dream of mine, feeded by the Jorge Amado novels.

MARCH 1, 2008 - SPRING COMES TO EUROPE, IN THE SOUTH THE AUTUMNS CALLS ITS RIGHTS

348 days ago

I spent about two weeks with my wonderful mother downhere, starting in Buenos Aires, moving throughout the Uruguayan seaside and Montevideo, where she got to know the Carnival, here, there and elsewhere you have some samples.

We had a great time everywhere, in Buenos Aires we went to the Zoo and the National Art Museum. I think I prefer the rundown bohemian San Telmo to the fancier neighbourhoods of Recoleta and Palermo. In the night we went to a couple of milongas: "Torquato Tasso" in San Telmo and "Canning" in Palermo. I also danced in Plaza Dorrego on Sunday, even salsa There were so many people everywhere that there was little place to dance the fancy way and I had a feeling the Argentinians prefer to keep it simple and tight, as tight as possible

At the seaside, we went to Cabo Polonio, La Pedrera, Punta del Este, Punta Ballena (check this amazing local artist ) and Piriapolis. We enjoyed the fine sand beaches, the cool and sometimes dangerous ocean waters, the delicious fish and wine. Not to mention desserts! People here are great company, kind and helpful.

In Montevideo we went to a couple of small art museums and wandered around, two nights at Teatro de Verano enjoying Carnival, especially my beloved murga. My mom made friends with my friends Cristina and Rosana and the very special Sofia, a Romanian who's 83 years old and lives here since she was 25.

Now is time for me to go back to work, start studying hard before the countdown starts, I'm in the middle of my time here. Long live the murga, anyway

FEBRUARY 14, 08 - BUENOS AIRES

364 days ago

It's a beautiful city, but...too similar to Europe and without the Montevideo oceanside walk. Big, impressive, noisy, dusty. I think I start to prefer nature tourism to city tourism. Give me some blue and green. I would have loved to go to Bariloche. I have to come back for a real escapade, far from the big cities.

I love the hostel, very comfy, although noise is a big problem too at night, at least in my room that opens towards the street. There are people from Belgium, UK, Chile, Austria, a few from Brasil. The Argentinians who run the "Puerto Limon" are doing a great job.

Today I bought my first tango shoes, excellent quality and price. I can't stop thinking that bargains here means that people can't afford much. I met a daughter and mother from Istanbul who were buying shoes. Small world.

FEBRUARY 8, 2008 - RAINY DAYS AND GREAT PEOPLE

370 days ago

From my point of view I'm not having much fun but a great time nevertheless.

Kind of lonely, wandering inside Teatro de Verano almost every night, chatting with the few people I know, going out with the Araca la Cana group at different tablados, always coming home around 2am. People here are great, with a nice sense of humour, generous and open minded, also tranquil - a winning combination.

And the murga is what I was looking for: an open book, a mirror of the society. I'm glad I came, in a few words. My theory is still foggy and my methodology bibliography basically inexistent. I hope to make it though. The object of my research is simply fantastic.

JANUARY 24, 2007 - CARNIVAL KNOCKS AT THE DOOR

385 days ago

I'm the one knocking at his door either, considering I came all the way down south to chase it.

I had a few very pleasant encounters these days and did my first interview with the extremely talented Marcel Keoroglian, writer and performer for Asaltantes con Patente. I met Gustavo Remedi who wrote a very interesting book about Uruguyan Carnival in 1996 and Juan Carlos Alberte - counsellor for the Coca-Cola cultural patrimony program "Huellas". As Gustavo teaches in the US it was a rich exchange and although I'm not a big Coke fan I have to admit their initiative is a real service for the community. My free pass for Teatro de Verano is not ready yet.

I also went to see three more rehearsals: La Gran Siete and once more "my" murgas: Araca la Cana (Eye to the cops) and Agarrate Catalina (something like "Hold your pants" in the sense of Pay attention/Be careful). All the chorus members enjoy what they are doing and have an enthusiastic public too. I feel is that when Carnival starts is leaves the neighbourhoods (the 'round the corner traditional social clubs) and moves towards more central areas where the "tablados" are. The City hall makes real efforts to keep the Carnival alive for the people who cannot afford to pay the entrance in the open air spaces of performance, but the mobile "tablados" that are paid by the authorities and go around the city are not the same like having a neighbourhood tablado every night. Murga and Carnival are also a story of neighbourhood solidarity and fiesta and this is why I came all the way down south.

Still, the performers keep their daily jobs up to Carnival and are really coming from all social classes and have all sorts of occupations. This makes me hope the traditions will be kept alive.

Now I'm getting ready to go out and play, seeing the "desfile" - inaugural parade. Ready to welcome MOMO, the god of laughs, who warms us up and brings us together more than anything.

JANUARY 15, NIGHT - A DIOS MOMO

393 days ago

I just landed from my first murga show: “El tablado del tiempo” by Asaltantes con Patente. After getting lost because I tried so hard to get there by walking. A taxi saved my life, then the show started much later after I got there.

Anyway, this Monday – Tuesday I’ve been walking around alone, wondering what am I doing here, what’s this crazyness to come all the way downhere and sweat in the heat without being able to get out for a few days because it’s too damn expensive. Why on Earth did I choose Montevideo and this crazy murga? Besides it’s so much like in Romania or elsewhere in Europe. I should have told my mother to come with me to Brasil instead of Uruguay.

Then the murga came alive. The dedication. The talent. The spirit. The warmth. The liaison with the public, who knew so many lyrics by heart. It hit me so hard that my eyes filled with tears. I saw Eduardo “Pitufo” Lombardo and his wonderful energy on stage, I saw Marcel Keoroglian who’s probably one of the greatest comic actors I’ve ever had a chance to see. People I knew about from the “Contrafarsa” monography and from YouTube.

I remembered - that’s why I came! Because I believe in it. In smart jokes and collective joy, in humor and the feeling of belonging as an universal cure. Murga is romantic and fun at the same time. And those people on stage have been doing it since childhood sometimes. I believe in foolish people, I believe in people who believe, and sing and dance and laugh and hope this will change the world a little! I believe in this part of me who believes in it and dragged me all the way down here against all odds.

I have a feeling Carnival here is a miracle, so I dedicate this night to Dios Momo, the Carnival God, the God of laughs and good spirits, who transports us for a while away from this earthly world.

JANUARY 15 - FIVE DAYS AFTER LANDING IN MONTEVIDEO

393 days ago

Here I am, in a city that reminds me of Bucharest and Constanta in Romania and some beach resorts nearby Lisbon in Portugal. Beautiful rundown buildings, from the neo-classical belle époque and the art nouveau/art déco period. A long ocean drive, about 18 kilometers. The estuary water is opaque and darkish, but when I swam in it seemed clean.

LAN Chile is an excellent airline and NYC airport services suck. That’s why my suitcases arrived 30 hours after me. At least nothing was missing.

The views from the plane were impressive: above Newark in NY (the Huston and the Atlantic), Santiago de Chile (the Andes) and Montevideo (Rio de la Plata estuary). I also stuck my nose to the shopwindows in the Santiago Airport: great crafts, I’m sure I’ll get something on the way back.

Ariel, the lawyer I was in touch with before coming, waited for me at the airport, took me to the house and invited me for dinner at their place afterwards. There were his wife, Martha and a friend: Jorge. All very kind, cultured and well travelled. The streets I saw reminded me of Bucharest and so did the furniture in their house, very 30’s looking. The house I’m in for now looks like some after-war home, with no phone or Internet, old, dirty and smelly, yuck! It was a tourist trap but I’ll move away for better. The area is beautiful though, with the huge Parque Batlle next door.

There are many palm trees and amazing blossoming hibiscus around and a sleepish ambiance due to the terrible heat. I have been told the ozone layer is thinner here and the sun rays far more dangerous. Days are very long, the sun sets after 9pm and people eat dinner extremely late (about 10 – 10:30pm). I’ve even seen a colibri and some small green parrots flying around. Cuuuuute!

On Friday I went to meet Rosana, a communications professor who has Romanian roots, Internet providence facilitated our encounter. Her in-laws house looks amazing too, with high ceilings, an Art Nouveau mosaic and a shadowed patio. I went out with her and Cristina, Spanish professor for foreigners, we had a great time. I arranged with Cristina to move over to her place for the same amount of money. She took me to the Pocitos beach the day after and afterwards to her place. Classy and cozy, with two green patios, two cats and one deaf old cute doggy: Ursula. So I’ll have to bear with this fox den for two more weeks only!

On Friday I also had lunch with Fernando Tetes, a journalist working a lot on the Carnival, quite a character, very nice and bubblying personality.



Saturday night – dinner at Rosana’s place, special guest: Gustavo V., who teaches various things at an American university and also wrote about Carnival, which he abhorres now. The whole gathering was quite fun and interesting actually, cultured and sarcastic, and nobody likes the murga! So far the intellectuals I’ve seen here are snobbing it for some reason, maybe I’ll discover why.

Sunday morning I broke the toilet floater about 10:00am while I was expecting Ana, her daughter lives in Montréal and send her a few things. She came right then, so she helped me tying the thing up as well as we could, to stop the water and put a note on the toilet cover. My “host” is out at the beaches, as mostly everyone is in January and I can’t be bothered, so I keep throwing in buckets of water and that’s about it. I spent the morning with Ana – same fine irony, bitter humour and culture I remarked with the other Uruguayans so far. She left me with Anabela and Fito, old time friends of a Montréal friend.

We had some lunch by Parque Rodo and the waiter heard us talking about murga, so he told me he was part of “Anti-murga BCG”, a very famous group that became a theater one now, no more Carnival. He will give me some contacts. Then we wandered around the Rambla, far and away, stopping every now and then to buy another big bottle of “Patricia” beer. Around 8 we arrived in the Old City – Plaza Zabala, in front of the Cathedral. All good and all closed…we just sit on a bench and a couple of other friends stopped by, so we ended up in an artsy looking apartment, in an amazingly renovated house, having beer, sausage and Colonia cheese. Alegria! We left about 11pm, slowly walking on the 18 de Julio boulevard. It was a very long day.

Monday I did pretty much nothing until 4pm, saw none, just went to the supermarket and made a salad, taking my time big time. Then I went for a long walk along 18 de Julio and deep inside the Ciudad Vieja, just looking around and having a great ice-cream from La Cigale. Men here are very Mediterranean, they look straight at you if they find you attractive and make you loud compliments. So far they were not vulgar, rather nice and even funny (May God keep you beautiful as you are now; There are people down the street keeping pretty women from going, you, they’ll never let you go!; Oh my, my friends, she’s the most beautiful thing passing by today, how will I survive?!).

So far so good then, only Montevideo is not as cheap as I thought, so I’ll better be careful with the small scholarship I have:(